


Frost and Flowers

by MeanderingMotivation



Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fae, Bisexual Hilda Valentine Goneril, Claude von Riegan is a Little Shit, F/F, Fae & Fairies, Fluff and Humor, Gen, Lesbian Marianne von Edmund, Mutual Pining, Teensy Bit of Angst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-26
Updated: 2020-10-26
Packaged: 2021-03-09 01:42:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,163
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27206083
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MeanderingMotivation/pseuds/MeanderingMotivation
Summary: Hilda is part of the Summer Court. She’s bright, beautiful, and one beam from her pretty face is enough to make Marianne’s heart flutter.Marianne though, she’s from the Winter Court. Ice blooms from her fingertips, and a single breath from her blue lips is enough to cause frost.They're completely different, and yet Marianne can't help but feel drawn to Hilda. Fortunately, the other faery seems to return her interest.
Relationships: Marianne von Edmund/Hilda Valentine Goneril
Comments: 3
Kudos: 25





	Frost and Flowers

**Author's Note:**

> Hello to anyone reading! First off, the setting for this fic is heavily inspired by a book series I read when I was a bit younger, called the ‘Wicked Lovely’ series. It was kind of like my Twilight phase, and I was absolutely obsessed with the series for a little while 😌
> 
> Long story short it’s set in a world where faeries exist alongside humans, although most humans cannot see them unless they don a ‘glamour’. Most of them exist within a court system. 
> 
> There’s a lot of romance in the series and it’s kind of cheesy, definitely on the younger side of YA literature, but twelve year old me loved it. It introduced to me the idea of poly relationships, and had queer representation, even if it was kind of in the background of the het romance. 
> 
> I was bored af recently and went through some of the older books on my bookcase and discovered the series, and this idea was born ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯
> 
> MariHilda has always been one of my favourite ships from FETH, and even if this fic is short and abruptly ended, I hope you enjoy 😊

* * *

Hilda is as giggly as some of Claude’s summer fey, but underneath her slothful behaviour and aversion to work, she’s got a sharp mind, and a strong body. She’s by far the most gifted combatant faery in the summer court, something Claude takes advantage of more often than not, when he wants something, or the need arises.

It has been observed over centuries, that Claude is the most measured and calm of Summer Kings. He is not prone to capriciousness, nor does he allow himself to act impulsively, despite his season being so volatile. In most opinions, it would have made more sense for him to be appointed to the High Court as an advisor, but alas, he had inherited his post, despite his distant personality. Most Summer Kings were volatile, burning as brightly as the sun one moment, before boiling over like a storm the next. Hot tempers, reckless actions. But Claude…

“Marianne! Nice to see you!” The Summer King’s beam is as blinding as ever. Marianne doubts she’ll ever grow accustomed to how the king just…glows. It almost hurts to behold. “Finally here to rescind fealty to His Princliness and join up with us?”

“Um, I…” Marianne stumbles over her words, averting her gaze. Even if it wasn’t customary, she’d still do it anyway. She struggles with maintaining eye contact. _The Winter King isn’t a prince anymore,_ she should say, in Dimitri’s defence. It’s what others would say, but the words get stuck in her throat. Dimitri may have been a king longer than Claude, the likes of who had never even _been_ a proper _prince,_ but the nickname from their previous years still stuck. “I…”

“I jest, Marianne. I wouldn’t pressure you into making such an abrupt decision.” It’s a lie, of course. If Claude really felt it necessary, he’d do so in a heartbeat, but he couldn’t openly admit that. “But I know how much you love birds, and they’re always flittering around here…” as if listening to his words (and perhaps the animals did, they certainly seemed rather in tune with the rulers of the faery world) a blue bird comes, and perches on his shoulder. Marianne can’t stop the small smile that twitches onto her pale face. “I know you think your personality is more suited to winter, but you have a warm temperament.” He reaches out, clasps her hand, and her icy skin steams at the contact. It stings, but isn’t unbearable. He’s toning his natural heat down. “My court is always open to you.”

“Oh, let her be, you pest.” Leonie Pinelli’s hair is the same shade as an orange marigold. Like most of the summer court fey, her locks are a striking colour, and although she doesn’t compare even a sliver to Claude in terms of brightness, she’s still sunny enough to fit in comfortably. “You’re scaring her with your dodgy salesman performance.”

“My apologies.” Claude releases her hand, and she holds back a relieved gasp. Sometimes the kings and queens forgot, how powerful their touch could be. A lot of the time, a mere brush of their fingers against flesh could be fatal to mortals. Claude in particular, was hot like a furnace. He could incinerate a normal human if he didn’t don a glamour. “I assume there’s a reason for this visit?”

“P-prince D-D-Dimitri s-sends me-“ He always chose her for Summer Court errands. Always. He probably knew that Claude was interested in her as a subject, and therefore wasn’t likely to play any tricks on her. The Summer King was amiable and charming, but all fey were prone to being mean-spirited, and Claude tended to overstep this mark when he played his games.

Ingrid had utterly refused to interact with him ever since the last time she’d been sent with a message from Dimitri. Apparently the Summer King wanted to test out how prudish the Winter Court fey could be, and allowed some of his denizens to ‘indulge’ in his meeting room. The Summer Palace was small in structure compared to others, as most summer fey preferred the outdoors, but Claude had _always_ kept his meeting room semi-professional…

(“He told me that The Summer Court was the court of ‘passion and pleasure!’ He made me sit through one of their…. _displays of frivolity_ and drink their disgusting, overripe wine, just to gauge our _discomfort_ with such public acts-“)

Marianne had ducked out of the room after that, her social metre ticking over. Even with her more refrained and less intense fellows, she still felt amiss, like she didn’t truly fit in.

No, the only time she ever felt any sort of semblance of belonging was when-

“Mari!” A sweet voice chimes happily, and she finally looks up from the soft grassy floor. Hilda Valentine Goneril is seemingly _floating_ over to her, in that seamlessly ethereal way summer court fey seem to do. They always make everything seem pretty, even acts of violence. Marianne had seen Hilda fight in the past, and even in battle it was like she was dancing. She could only be fortunate, that she’d never had to face her in combat. She’d be too struck by her beauty to defend herself.

Her pink hair, by far the most eye-catching Marianne has ever seen, sways gently at her back, the fringe framing her face. She’s lovely to behold, feminine, but not delicate. Nobody who can swing an axe like she can gets through their life without having some nicely defined muscle.

“How wonderful to see you!” She wraps her arms around Marianne in an embrace, her slender but toned frame squeezing Marianne tight enough for her to wheeze slightly when released. “Oops, sorry!” She apologizes, but there’s no sheepishness there. “I’m such a dainty flower, but I don’t know my own strength…”

“I-it’s o-okay.” It is. Usually Marianne hates unsolicited affection, but with Hilda…

Hilda is as warm as all Summer Court fey, but it isn’t sizzling, like Claude’s heat. Tempered. Pleasant. Like a warm breeze, or a pleasantly toasty heated blanket. Splendid. “Aw, Mari! You look exhausted! That Dimitri, sending you all the way here in this heat…” she trails off with a frown, shaking her head “Claude, you really ought to have a word with him for doing this to sweet Mari!”

“Now Hilda, be reasonable. I simply cannot scold Dimitri for how he commands his fey.”

Hilda scoffs, rolling her eyes. It’s such a quarrelsome display, that Marianne feels stupid for ever assuming the pair had been bedfellows. The Summer Court may have been open in regards to sexual encounters, but Claude and Hilda were more like brother and sister than anything. She’d also heard rumours, that Claude tended to seek his own relief outside of the confines of his own court…

“Um, yeah, that doesn’t fly with me, mister _‘Sylvain doesn’t step a foot in my court without an escort, Dimitri, I mean it!’”_ She does her best to mimic Claude’s voice, and Leonie (as well as a few summer fey rolling in a flowerbed) giggle.

“Hey, I stand by the decision to revoke his privileges here. He nearly caused an all-out war between two of our girls, and that was _before_ Felix Fraldarius busted in here and spilled blood. Blood. In _my_ court.” Claude sounds uncharacteristically irked even as he says it.

Marianne remembered how hideously embarrassed Dimitri had been, to learn that Sylvain had upset the balance of positive polygamy a lot of the summer fey preferred. They were open to one another, but Sylvain had introduced them to petty jealousy-

Yeah, Sylvain hadn’t received a positive reception upon his return to the Winter Court. Annette had told her that if it hadn’t been for Ingrid and Felix’s interference ( _their_ relationship was a complicated one, Sylvain and Felix’s) Dimitri might have cast him out for the trouble he’d caused. Peace had always been tentative amongst the courts, subject mostly to those in charge at the time. Fortunately, Dimitri and Claude wanted to retain that peace, and tolerated one another well enough.

“S-sorry…”

“No, Mari! Don’t you dare apologise! You didn’t pull down his trousers for him-“

“Oh, will you lot just shut up!” Lysithea finally spoke up, from where she’d been reclining in Claude’s wood throne, a book in hand. Her pink eyes were narrowed in distaste, and she looked a second from lobbing a nearby pebble at their heads. “Have you no sense of common courtesy? I’m trying to _read_ here.”

“You shouldn’t be sitting on my throne when we have guests from other courts.” Claude said, but there’s no scolding in his tone. He just sounds amused. “But I suppose little girls like playing princess…”

“Say one more word and I’ll make you regret it!”

Standing here, Marianne feels almost…natural. She isn’t open or comfortable with displaying her emotions like summer court fey, and yet…

“Should we really be arguing like this with one of King Dimitri’s fey here?” Ignatz was sketching one of the birds, shoulder to shoulder with Raphael, who was munching on some kind of fruit assortment. The pair were never far from Claude, serving as two of his most distinguished guards.

“Mari is one of us!” Hilda defended staunchly, although the other summer fey seemed to take stock of themselves, Lysithea turning back to her book, Leonie her spear, and Ignatz his art. Raphael merely smiled around his mouthful, and nodded at her.

Claude grinned one last time at Marianne, so scheming and handsome, before falling back amongst the wildflowers, allowing some of the fey playing there to nuzzle him, to kiss his knuckles and palms. There was nothing inherently sexual about it, just the summer fey being affectionate and touchy.

“You can tell Claude the message over dinner. You must stay, especially after your trip here!” Hilda added the last part, when Marianne opened her mouth to object. Dimitri hadn’t given her a time limit, but she still felt awkward about overstaying her welcome. “I’ll have some fish prepared, you know how delicious they are from our streams!” _I know your favourite foods_ is left unsaid, but Marianne hears it loud and clear.

Her pale skin lights up in a pink blush. It’s the most her cold flesh can manage. “That sounds…nice.” The lack of stutter has Hilda beaming. It had taken time, but Marianne had eventually learned how to speak without it when in the other faery’s presence. They hadn’t practiced or anything, it just came…naturally. Naturally, over time spent making jewellery and grinding flowers into perfumes.

Before it had come time to choose, and Marianne had breathed in the frost, whilst Hilda accepted the flower crown, and let herself be kissed. Marianne had felt a sense of betrayal at that, at those lips firmly planted on both of her cheeks, at the way she’d sighed, and _glowed,_ all the while Marianne hacked at the frost invading her lungs, shuddering under Dimitri’s watchful eyes.

Before Marianne traded the academy for a castle in a dense, snow covered forest, and Hilda went off to frolic in meadows and woods, dressed in slinky dresses with lips stained red from berry wine.

Marianne didn’t blame her. She belonged in the summer court. She always had. It was Marianne who…

She’d always spent more of her time around Hilda and the others when at the academy, but she’d never felt as…confident as them. As open. She never…flourished, despite their attempts at friendship. It had always been up in the air as to what court she would swear fealty to, but none of them had ever expected she’d go with _The Winter Court._ Sure, the Dark Court and the Shadow Court weren’t really for her, even if she felt wretched at times, but the High Court…she was so pious and _respectful_ , most had assumed she’d go there.

But the High Court existed solely in the realm of faery. Once she went there, she couldn’t leave, not unless given permission by Rhea, and the High Court Queen seldom allowed her fey to venture out of their old world. If Marianne swore fealty to them, she’d hardly see Hilda…

And that was intolerable to her.

So she’d chosen to align herself with the Winter Court, feeling it was a satisfactory ‘in-between’ place for her, even if she never truly felt at home there either. It wasn’t for lack of trying, she did her best not to shy away from the other fey there, nor was it due to her being made to feel unwelcome, although Winter Court fey weren’t nearly as open and affectionate as their Summer Court counterparts…

Dimitri was a benevolent king most of the time. He didn’t turn away those in need, and he treated his subjects well, even if he was prone to dark moods and had been through periods of bloodlust. Marianne would never forget, the face of that Shadow Court fey who he’d frozen solid in a fit of temper.

She (and the rest of the faery world) could only be grateful he’d calmed down over the last decade or so, not that it was unusual for faeries to be cruel in the slightest. The Shadow Court and Dark Court in particular each went through periods of unrest…

The Summer Court though…the most unstable she’d seen them was when Lorenz Hellman Gloucester tried to challenge Claude for his crown. This wasn’t a crime taken lightly by most of the court monarchs, but Claude had been…lenient. Only seeming to punish him out of obligation rather than true spite. Lorenz had been sent to watch the dancing faery circles in different parts of the world, and make certain that Claude’s fey weren’t tempting too many humans. It wasn’t a particularly distinguished job, but Lorenz had learned his lesson since, and his own relationship with Claude had improved. He spent most of his time now making sure the court retained _some_ sense of decorum, something Marianne had noticed Claude was happy to let him do.

She noticed so much of them. Her friends.

“Let’s go make flower crowns!” Hilda grasped Marianne’s hand, and Marianne held back a soft sigh at the toasty warmth that enveloped her palm. Hilda swung their joined hands playfully, and Marianne felt herself begin to thaw as she was led from the throne room, and outside into one of the meadows. Everything here was as Claude willed it, the human realm closely entangled with his own power. Blooming flowers enveloped much of the soft grass, vibrant, and somehow remaining untrodden despite how many feet passed over them. Even as she tentatively grazed a daisy with her shoe, it perked right back up, its petals seemingly _waving_ at her. It made her smile.

“You’re always beautiful, Mari, but seeing you smile always makes me happy,” Hilda is so utterly unabashed at speaking so intimately, as she settles down neatly in a patch. She drags Marianne down with her gently, and Marianne allows the other female to press against her side, as they’d done so in the past, so many times before. “I wish I could see it more often.”

“You…” Marianne wants to tell Hilda how _her_ smile was truly the beautiful one. How it was so breathlessly lovely, that it made her cold body flush _hot._ How it had made her dream impossibly lewd things, how it made her _want_ impossibly lewd things… 

She wasn’t ashamed of her sexuality. Of the way she felt about Hilda. She was only saddened that she’d never deserve to share with Hilda what she truly desired, because she…she…

Hilda wasn’t shy. She’d always made her interest known in subtle ways, but she’d never overstepped, or made Marianne uncomfortable. She was waiting for her to make the first move. It was considerate. Kind.

But Marianne was a coward.

“A violet,” Hilda delicately plucked the flower, drumming her manicured fingernails in the soil, until another sprouted a second later. She presented it to Marianne without a dramatic flourish. Just sincerity. This was not harmless flirtation. This was courting. “For you, my shrinking violet.”

Marianne accepts it carefully, making certain to keep her frost from creeping up the stalk. “It’s beautiful. Thank you, Hilda.” She tucks it carefully behind her ear, holding her breath when Hilda reaches out again, this time pushing back a few strands of her hair, so it can be better seen.

“A pretty flower for a pretty girl.” It’s cheesy, but Marianne’s heart still flutters. “I’m glad I caught you, Mari. Your visits are less frequent these days.”

“It is Claude’s season. Dimitri doesn’t send us on errands as much when his part of the cycle ends.”

“Hmm. And why did he send you this time?” Hilda’s voice is light, but Marianne can tell she’s cautious. She’d witnessed first hand Dimitri taking a fatal blow once, and she’d never quite lost her discontent over the knowledge that he’d _healed_ from it. The Winter King was strong. “Did Claude infringe too closely to his domain again? Ugh, he can be such a tease.”

“The Shadow Queen sent some of her faeries to The High Court a few days ago. Dimitri is…” for lack of a better word-

“Paranoid.” Hilda finished, sensing the direction of her thoughts effortlessly. “How could he not be, after everything that has happened in the past? I hope for all of our sakes that Edelgard is just trying to better relations. If it wasn’t for Byleth’s intervention last time, she would have lost her head.”

Those were horrible times for all of them. The relationships that had been damaged had yet to be healed completely, but Marianne was at least grateful for the solitary faery Byleth, who had helped smooth things over. They’d disappeared afterwards, and they hadn’t returned since…

“But I don’t want to talk about faery politics now. I want to enjoy our time together, just the two of us, before dinner time comes and I have to share you with the others.” Hilda pouts.

_I am yours,_ Marianne wants to say, but the words get stuck in her throat, as they always do _nobody else matters to me like you do._

A robin comes to perch on her shoulder, and Marianne strokes its beak contently, melting into Hilda’s side as a sense of relaxation comes over her. Hilda shifts, wrapping an arm around her shoulders, and Marianne tries not to be too obvious when she inhales her flowery scent greedily. Nobody smells like this in the Winter Court. They smell of snow, fresh rain, and pine. Not unpleasant, but not… _this._

Nothing can compare to this bliss. To being with Hilda, surrounded by such sublime nature, and her beloved birds. If it wasn’t for the stark difference in their temperatures, it would have been easy to pretend this was before they’d both had to choose.

And the longer Marianne was separated from Hilda, the more she realised…

She’d made the wrong choice.

* * *

**Author's Note:**

> Yep this really focused a bit more on the courts and Hilda and Mari’s backstory than anything else, but I had fun writing it that way 🥰
> 
> Might add some more one-shots, might not. Could be with MariHilda, or with some other ships. Tell me what you think, if you want, and hope you enjoyed! 😃


End file.
